Re: Interviewing while in a job etiquette

Posted 07 September 2012 - 10:27 AM

If you do take the offer, make sure to give your boss two weeks' notice. It's fair to the employer, as it gives you a chance to tie up loose ends and it gives them a chance to start searching. And if you have a good rapport with your boss, it will allow you to leave on good terms. I know people who have gone back to their old jobs after jumping ship. Their old employers hired them back due to the (high) quality of their work, and because they quit in a fair manner to all concerned.

Re: Interviewing while in a job etiquette

Posted 07 September 2012 - 10:50 AM

I have an issue with the whole 2 weeks thing right now. I should be able to get a new, better job at the begging of October(when the guy that should higher me should get his federal grant). I wont know until October weather or not he can higher me BUT I need to give 2 weeks notice for my current job and there are other people that my potential employer could higher if I'm not available when he first needs me.

I'm going to give my current employer my 2 weeks and try "leave the door open" if things don't pan out the way they way I want them to...hopefully that will work. otherwise I'll be out of job for a bit

Re: Interviewing while in a job etiquette

Posted 07 September 2012 - 10:51 AM

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At my previous position I had the blessing of having a supervisor who was courteous, understanding, and very easy to work with. It was my first I.T. related position, and the company was looking to hire a 2nd shift Data Analyst to assist with this big project. Word was passed along to my College Department Head, and after casually discussing it with him, he passed along my resume.

3 interviews later I was a part-time 2nd shift Data Analyst at the company. I learned a lot, and worked on several projects I am still proud to say that "I did" or were "Mine". As the 6 month mark of my time there, and my first college graduation date, was drawing near I started asking about a full-time position. When I was hired it was heavily INFERRED to me that after graduation they would be able to roll me over into a full-time position.

That was not the case sadly.

I had completed a few interviews here and there just to keep my options open come post-grad, but after I started to see how long it may take (if ever) for me to get a full-time position with the company, let alone the possibility of staying in my department with my supervisor, I started to hunt around.

When I interviewed for a Developer position that I was very interested in, I didn't wish to cause any ill-wishes and so I politely informed my supervisor that I had interviewed for another job, and that just so he knew, he may get a phone call. He was very professional and thanked me for letting him know ahead of time, and even politely understood my situation. While I did not end up with that position I had been so eagerly interested in, I shortly before graduation received a phone call back from a similar position I had interviewed for months prior.

In my previous position I did some developmental work along with some SSR, but it was never what I truly wanted to do, day-in and day-out. Had I been offered a position with the company to stay, I probably would have stayed just because of the respect I had for my supervisor and fellow workers.

For a surprise twist, in the week prior to my leaving, *someone* leaked to one of the Division managers that I would be leaving soon, and, coupled with my work reputation and history, they tracked down the Finances Manager (one department over) and told him to meet with me and discuss if I would have any interest in being a Financial Analyst.

I actually interviewed for that position my last day employed with the company, but I have never heard more on it so I assume that they went with someone more qualified (no hard feelings at all.)

My last night there my supervisor shook my hand and wished me well. "It sucks to see you leave, but I understand and I know you're going to do excellently wherever you may end up." were his words. I will never forget my time at that company, not for the job, the opportunities it offered me while finishing up my Associates, no, not even for what I was a part of by being employed there. I will always remember my time there because of the blessing I had in being able to work for a supervisor who was considerate, flexible, respectable, knowledgeable, and good at what they did.

That time in my life genuinely showed me it's not always the position, sometimes it's the people.

Re: Interviewing while in a job etiquette

Posted 07 September 2012 - 11:04 AM

At this point I have about 90% confidence that I'll be offered the job. The recruiter had mentioned to me that they would like to have me do remote work if at all possible just to get up to speed with things, and that they were extremely impressed with my work.

Based on what I've heard so far I would say chances are pretty good that I'll get the offer.

The recruiter asked me about mobile dev, and mentioned that they were hoping that I knew some or was willing to learn. Amusingly enough, I was asked to do a freelance gig for developing an iPhone App or two about 2 hours before that call. I've also been working with AndroidSDK since I got an android tablet for my own entertainment. Quite the timing on that one I suppose.

Even better that they're primarily a Ruby shop, and that's the language I spend most all of summer reading on. 14,000 pages of technical manuals read this summer between semesters, about 70% of it on Ruby. Do mind that I've spent the better part of the last year developing in purely Ruby, so I do have the experience in implementing it as well.

Re: Interviewing while in a job etiquette

Posted 07 September 2012 - 11:09 AM

ishkabible, on 07 September 2012 - 12:50 PM, said:

I have an issue with the whole 2 weeks thing right now. I should be able to get a new, better job at the begging of October(when the guy that should higher me should get his federal grant). I wont know until October weather or not he can higher me BUT I need to give 2 weeks notice for my current job and there are other people that my potential employer could higher if I'm not available when he first needs me.

I'm going to give my current employer my 2 weeks and try "leave the door open" if things don't pan out the way they way I want them to...hopefully that will work. otherwise I'll be out of job for a bit

It seems to me that two weeks is the absolute minimum for courteous behavior. Cutting out with less is reserved for emergencies, like for example, if you die unexpectedly. Certainly, you can't expect a good word from someone if you leave on Friday and say, oh, by the way, I won't be back on Monday.
Any employer should be able to understand that, since they expect that courtesy from you when you leave. If he doesn't know on the 15th that he needs you on the first of the month, he should at least be willing to work with you on that. Maybe you can do a side-by-side transition, and phase out of one and into the other.

As for your current boss, if you feel like showing them some respect I'd ask him for a private chat and let him know the score so at least he's in the loop. It may be superstitious on my part, but I always like to get out of the office for a conversation like that. Take a walk or something, and talk on neutral ground. It makes it less official, more of a "word to the wise" situation. That way you don't have to give notice, but he can start lining up interviews, just in case. That bit of courtesy will help smooth things, and as mac says, treating people right can help to keep doors open.

Re: Interviewing while in a job etiquette

If I do get this and start getting some high level experience in Mobile and Rails I'll probably start frequenting those forums more and posting quite a few tutorials on the subjects.

My thing is that I love to learn. If it interests me, I'll do it. Give me a book or a tutorial and I'll have the basics down within a week. I just love to try out anything I can get my hands on. My motivation is I want to see how far I can go and what all I can manage to make, not getting a comfortable retirement package with benefits (though that is nice.)

I just want to find a place motivated by passion and genuine love for the field rather than of a paycheck. As always, I do acknowledge my youth and inevitable naivety on such subjects, but I do like to hope that such places do exist.

Re: Interviewing while in a job etiquette

Posted 07 September 2012 - 01:17 PM

When I eventually leave I have a feeling it won't be on as good terms as some of you have had. Apparently the boss in our department always blanks people as soon as they hand in their resignation, barely acknowledging their existance.

Re: Interviewing while in a job etiquette

Posted 07 September 2012 - 01:41 PM

Wish I didnt go through this thread at work now, I pissed myself laughing at BD's picture. I dont want to rub it in anyones face, but I would say I have the perfect job ever. I am self employed for as long as I want with a fantastic company, and the boss is what I would call a perfect boss. I can work when I want and leave when I want, and I still get the same pay. I can also get another job alongside this if I wanted too. I also get to do a lot of travelling for the company, I really cant complain.
Point of my boasting is that although most people say dont tell your boss, I think only you can make that decission. In my last job for instance, there was no way I would tell the boss that I was looking for another job. In my current job however, I would, simple reason being that the boss has treated me extremely well and has also been there as someone to talk to when I have had problems, so telling him I was looking for a new job to me seems like the respectful thing to do. Funny enough, I have gotten so close with the boss, that if I didnt tell him, it would feel like I was cheating on him (I mean the sense of guilt, no funny business going on here, lol).

Re: Interviewing while in a job etiquette

Posted 08 September 2012 - 05:57 AM

In my state, salaried IT employees are an exempted class. This means there is no maximum number of hours in a work week and no overtime compensation requirement. Essentially, they are legally allowed to work us to death for very little money.